Gwendolyn Garcia’s return as Cebu governor is possible
It has been already three weeks already since the closure of filing the Certificate of Candidacies for aspiring or incumbent politicians who want to sit in a particular elective position in the name of rendering socalled “public service” to the electorate. In our country that is too dependent on someone's patronages, he has to run for certain elective position just to fulfill his promises to provide social services that are beyond to be given by the elders of electorates' families. These phenomena called paternalism and delegative democracy are also the reasons why our community or our country itself cannot move forward, because those in elective positions or even in some plantilla positions in the civil services are generally relatives and friends of certain elected officials in their respective locality and these phenomena have been supported by the clamor of many to bring back former Cebu Governor and incumbent Cebu Province Third District Representative, Gwendolyn Garcia.
Many Cebu Province electorates have been clamoring since the 2015 elections to bring Gwendolyn Garcia back to the Capitol because electorates feel that she has the political will to impose many necessary projects needed for the countryside like farm-to-market roads or even her flagship tourism program, the Suroy Suroy Sugbo. The reason for this nostalgia is the governing style of Governor Hilario “Junjun” Davide III, who prefers to delegate some of his executive tasks to his advisers, which has had created the perception that Cebu Province hasn't been run by an executive governor for more than five years. Also, the personal demeanor of Davide doesn't help him satisfy the need of province electorates for a governor that is strong or who has political will, because he has been led into misguided advice by his advisors.
The problem about bringing back Gwendolyn Garcia, however, is that she has still a pending dismissal case before the Ombudsman. If dismissed with finality, she would no longer be qualified to run for public office. This dismissal case has had something to do with the Cebu Province's decision to buy an underwater property of the Balili Family in the City of Naga through a resolution in the Provincial Board. Another barrier to her candidacy is that her family's nemesis in Dumanjug, the Gicas, filed a disqualification case against her before the Comelec as she filed the COC for the governor of Cebu, saying that she hasn't been liable for any case that carries the accessory penalty of perpetual disqualification from holding public office that has become final and executory in her COC.
These following barriers to the candidacy of Garcia are not hindrances for her to return to the Capitol because it is quite too late to give final verdicts for these following cases in this fast-approaching electoral season and it seems that the Duterte administration is quite supportive of her candidacy over that of Agnes Magpale. Majority of mayors, councilors, or barangay captains in Cebu Provinces are reportedly committed already to support Gwen's comeback bid as governor of Cebu.
Joseph Solis Alcayde